Device for isolating an object from external motions

ABSTRACT

There is disclosed a device comprising two wire rope isolators for isolating an object from external motions. The wire rope isolators are arranged such that, if one of the two wire rope isolators is loaded in compression, then the other wire rope isolator is loaded in tension.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of, claims priority to and the benefitof, U.S. Ser. No. 13/700,779, filed Nov. 29, 2012 and entitled “DEVICEFOR ISOLATING AN OBJECT FROM EXTERNAL MOTIONS.” The '779 application isa U.S. national phase filing under 35 U.S.C. §371 of PCT/EP2011/058675filed May 26, 2011, which application claims priority to and the benefitof European Application No. 10164781.6, filed on Jun. 2, 2010. All ofthe aforementioned applications are incorporated herein by reference intheir entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a device for isolating an object fromexternal motions. For example, the invention is particularly applicableto mechanical isolators against shocks and vibrations.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Absorbing shocks and vibrations is a typical problem encountered inmechanics related domains. Most usual solutions are based on combining aspring, for example a helical or a disc-shaped belleville spring, with aunidirectional damper, for example a viscous liquid damper or arubbery/elastomeric damper. A major disadvantage of these isolators isthat they involve complex constructions, especially to ensure liquid orair sealing. In addition, they often involve hitting between elements.Moreover, their properties may depend on the ambient temperature.

Wire rope isolators (WRI's) constitute another common type of mechanicalisolators against shocks and vibrations, including for example polycalWRI's, helical WRI's, ring-type WRI's, straight cable WRI's and otherspecial WRI's. The FIG. 1 illustrates a helical WRI of the prior art,along with its main loading directions. The exemplary helical WRIcomprises two retainer bar assemblies arranged parallel with an x-axis,each retainer bar assembly comprising holes. The two retainer barassemblies are bound one to the other by a single cable, the cable bentbetween the bar assemblies, passing through their holes and generallyclamped by each of the retainer bar assemblies using screws. Thedirection along the x-axis is called the shear direction, the directionalong the y-axis is called the roll direction and the direction alongthe z-axis is called the tension-compression direction. For polycalWRI's, the difference between the roll and the shear directions is lessobvious. For ring-type WRI's, the roll and the shear directions areequivalent and best known as the radial direction.

A major disadvantage of WRI's is that they are omnidirectional damperswith directionally dependent stiffness and damping properties, whichresults in the circumstance that the tuning of an application based onWRI's is difficult.

Yet another disadvantage of WRI's is that the maximum attainabledistance from a single interface plane with a given size to the elasticcentre of an optimised set-up of spring-damper elements will be smallerfor a set-up with omnidirectional springs as compared to an optimisedset-up with unidirectional springs. That is, if only a single interfaceplane is available, then achieving balance of an isolated objectrequires more space using a set-up with omnidirectional springs. Thisdrawback of the WRI's will be further explicated in the following, aswell as how it may be overcome by the present invention.

Yet another disadvantage of WRI's is that the size of an omnidirectionalWRI in the tension-compression direction generally becomes significantlylarger due to repeated force-deflection cycling in thetension-compression direction and even due to repeated force-deflectioncycling in the roll direction. This effect is believed to be caused byplastic deformation of the wires of the steel cable. Because theexternal load levels and the accompanying material stress levels aremuch higher upon tension than compression, the plastic deformation tendsto increase the size of the WRI in the tension direction. A consequenceof this phenomenon is that the average gravity loaded position of anobject isolated with omnidirectional WRI's, relative to its directsurroundings, is not constant, but changing with repeated loading duringthe lifetime of the WRI's. In addition, depending on the location andorientation of the WRI's, the average orientation of the isolated objectmay be affected. Moreover, due to the increase of size in the tensiondirection, the amount of travel available for shock isolation in thetension direction becomes smaller than initial, resulting in highermaximum residual accelerations.

In an attempt to overcome some of the aforementioned drawbacks, thepatent U.S. Pat. No. 5,482,259 discloses a unidirectional damper to beused as a pipe restraint, which makes use of the shear direction of asingle helical WRI. A major disadvantage of a unidirectional damperaccording to the patent U.S. Pat. No. 5,482,259 is that it is hardlyapplicable to practical shock damping, as shock damping requires arather high (initial) stiffness, in order to limit the displacements dueto gravity and dynamic excitations with low frequency content. In fact,the mass of a unidirectional damper according to U.S. Pat. No.5,482,259, which would be required to achieve a stiffness value suitablefor practical shock damping, would be very large.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention aims at providing a solution that may be used toovercome at least some of the technical problems described above. Inparticular, it aims to provide a device with high (initial) stiffnessover own mass ratio, which may thus be suitable for shock damping. Atits most general, the invention proposes a device comprising two wirerope isolators for isolating an object from external motions. The wirerope isolators are arranged such that, if one of the two wire ropeisolators is loaded in compression, then the other wire rope isolator isloaded in tension.

Advantageously, each of the two wire rope isolators comprising tworetainer bars flexibly connected one to the other by at least one cable,the device may comprise linear guiding means allowing only for arelative displacement of some of the retainer bars with respect to theother retainer bars in a single direction, said direction being thecommon tension-compression direction of the two wire rope isolators.

In a preferred embodiment, the device comprising an upper wire ropeisolator and a lower wire rope isolator, each wire rope isolatorcomprising an upper retainer bar and a lower retainer bar, the upperretainer bar of the upper wire rope isolator may be rigidly connected tothe lower retainer bar of the lower wire rope isolator by virtue ofbridging means. The lower retainer bar of the upper wire rope isolatormay be rigidly connected to the upper retainer bar of the lower wirerope isolator, said rigidly connected retainer bars forming a centralretainer bar assembly between the two wire rope isolators.

Preferably, the bridging means may include at least one tube, of whichone of the ends may be rigidly connected to the upper retainer bar ofthe upper wire rope isolator and of which other end may be rigidlyconnected to the lower retainer bar of the lower wire rope isolator.

Preferably, the linear guiding means may comprise a hollow connectingrod rigidly connected to the central retainer bar assembly and arrangedsubstantially parallel with the common tension-compression direction ofthe two wire rope isolators. The linear guiding means may also comprisea guiding pin rigidly connected to the lower retainer bar of the lowerwire rope isolator and arranged substantially parallel with the commontension-compression direction of the two wire rope isolators. The linearguiding means may also comprise a guide bush rigidly connected to theupper retainer bar of the upper wire rope isolator. The hollowconnecting rod may slide through the guide bush and over the guidingpin.

For example, the hollow connecting rod may comprise, at its end oppositeto the guiding pin, an upper universal revolute joint, and the guidingpin may comprise, at its end opposite to the hollow connecting rod, alower universal revolute joint. The two universal revolute joints may bespherical bearings.

Advantageously, at least one of the two wire rope isolators may be apolycal wire rope isolator or a helical wire rope isolator or aring-type wire rope isolator.

Preferably, the device may comprise means to limit rotation around thecommon tension-compression direction of the two wire rope isolators. Forexample, these means may comprise a pin extending through one of thespherical bearings, one of the retainer bars comprising two protrusionsarranged so as to slide over the cylindrical surface of the pin when theisolated object moves. In another embodiment, the means to limitrotation may comprise one or two cables rigidly connected to one of theretainer bars at one of their ends, the cables being rigidly connectedto the surroundings of the object at their other ends.

Thus, a major advantage provided by a device according to the presentinvention is that it is provides a simple, reliable and easy-to-tuneunidirectional damper, with more linear and substantiallytemperature-independent force-deflection properties and anti-bottomingfeature.

Another advantage provided by a damper according to the presentinvention is that, despite plastic deformation occurs during use in eachof its two WRI's, similarly as in a single WRI, their total externaldimension in the tension-compression direction is constrained by thebridging means. Thus, an internal compression load develops by repeatedloading during the lifetime of the damper. Because the total dynamicloads on and the resulting plastic deformation in each of the two WRI'sis approximately equal, the average position of the central retainer barassembly and thus the external dimension of two assembled WRI's is notsignificantly affected. Thus, the position and orientation of an objectisolated with the damper is not affected by repeated loading as much asfor an object isolated with common omnidirectional WRI's. Also theavailable shock travel in both loading directions remains approximatelyequal to the initial value, resulting in similar maximum residualaccelerations for similar shocks during the lifetime of the damper.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Non-limiting examples of the invention are described below withreference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a helical Wipe Rope Isolator accordingto the prior art;

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates by a cross section an exemplaryembodiment of a unidirectional damper according to the invention;

FIGS. 3 a and 3 b schematically illustrate by perspective views anotherexemplary embodiment of a unidirectional damper according to theinvention;

FIGS. 4 a and 4 b schematically illustrate by perspective views yetanother exemplary embodiment of an unidirectional damper according tothe invention;

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates graphically the efficiency of anexemplary unidirectional damper according to the invention;

FIGS. 6 a, 6 b, 6 c and 7 schematically illustrate further advantages ofusing unidirectional dampers according to the present invention;

FIGS. 8 and 9 schematically illustrate by perspective views exemplarymountings to the surroundings of an unidirectional damper according tothe invention including means to limit the rotation of the damper aroundthe common tension-compression direction.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates by a cross section an exemplaryembodiment of a unidirectional damper according to the invention. Theexemplary embodiment may comprise two similar WRI's, for example twostandard polycal WRI's. An upper polycal WRI may comprise an upperretainer bar 1 and a lower retainer bar 2, the upper retainer bar 1 andthe lower retainer bar 2 being flexibly connected by cable loops 3 and4. A lower polycal WRI may comprise a lower retainer bar 6 and an upperretainer bar 5, the upper retainer bar 5 and the lower retainer bar 6being flexibly connected by cable loops 7 and 8. The two adjoiningretainer bars 2 and 5 of the upper and the lower WRI respectively, maybe rigidly connected. In another embodiment, the two retainer bars 2 and5 may be replaced by a same and single integrated retainer bar. In thepresent embodiment, the two retainer bars 2 and 5 may be rigidlyconnected to a hollow connecting rod 9. The hollow connecting rod 9 mayslide over a central guiding pin 10 as well as slide through a guidebush 12. The sliding interfaces may be realized by loose fits. Thecentral guiding pin 10 may be rigidly connected to the lower retainerbar 6. The guide bush 12 may be rigidly connected to the upper retainerbar 1. It is important noting that the hollow connecting rod 9 and theguiding pin 10 are arranged parallel with the tension-compressiondirection of the two WRI's. A rigid connection may bridge between theupper and lower retainer bars 1 and 6, for example two hollow tubes 13and 14 mounted to the upper and lower retainer bars 1 and 6 by bolts ornuts. Universal revolute joints may be arranged at both mountinginterfaces, for example implemented by spherical bearings 15 and 16, soas to obtain a unidirectional mode of working whilst allowing relativerotations to the surroundings to which the damper is connected. Theguiding pin 10, the hollow connecting rod 9 and the guide bush 12 form alinear guiding system, which ensures a relative rectilinear motionbetween the mounting interfaces of the damper. It also enables asufficiently high bending stiffness and sufficiently high resonancefrequencies of the bending modes of the damper, as well as preventsbuckling during compression of the damper

During displacements of the hollow connecting rod 9 over the centralguiding pin 10 and through the guide bush 12, the upper and the lowerWRI's are used in their compression and tension directions only, thesedirections providing the highest stiffness, thus resulting in anunidirectional combination with the highest possible stiffness over ownmass ratio. In addition, the compression of one WRI is accompanied withthe tension of the other WRI. Actually, their output reaction forces aresummed, as they are mechanically placed parallel. Hereby, the stiffeningbehaviour of the tension direction of one WRI is partly compensated bythe softening behaviour of the compression direction of the other WRI.This results in a more linear force-deflection characteristic. Themaximum displacement of the combination equals the maximum displacementof each individual WRI.

Moreover, at maximum displacements of the hollow connecting rod 9 overthe central guiding pin 10 and through the guide bush 12, the cableloops of the WRI loaded in tension tend to straighten, by which theforce increases more rapidly, resulting in a stiffening force-deflectionbehaviour and in an effective anti-bottoming measure.

FIGS. 3 a and 3 b schematically illustrate by perspective views anotherexemplary embodiment of a unidirectional damper according to theinvention, based on commercially available polycal WRI's. The extendedposition of the damper is illustrated by FIG. 3 a, while its compressedposition is illustrated by FIG. 3 b. For the sake of clarity, referenceshave been inserted only in FIG. 3 a. The damper may comprise an upperpolycal WRI, said upper polycal WRI comprising an outer part 37 and aninner part 38 of an upper retainer bar, as well as an inner part 39 andan outer part 40 of a lower retainer bar, said upper and lower retainerbars being connected by four upper cables 49 a, 49 b, 49 c and 49 d. Thedamper may also comprise a lower polycal WRI, said lower polycalcomprising an outer part 41 and an inner part 42 of an upper retainerbar, as well as an inner part 45 and an outer part 46 of a lowerretainer bar, said upper and lower retainer bars being connected by fourlower cables 50 a, 50 b, 50 c and 50 d. The outer part 40 of the lowerretainer bar of the upper polycal WRI may be rigidly connected to theouter part 41 of the upper retainer bar of the lower polycal WRI byvirtue of a stud and of screws, which are not visible on FIGS. 3 a and 3b. The damper may comprise a connecting rod 32 with an upper rod end 31,the connecting rod 32 sliding through a guide bush 34 and over a guidingpin 43 with a lower rod end 48. The guide bush 34 may be rigidlyconnected to an upper flange 33. The upper flange 33 may be rigidlyconnected to two tubes 44 and 44′ by virtue of two upper bolts 35 and35′ respectively. The two tubes 44 and 44′ may be rigidly connected to alower flange 47 by virtue of two bolts respectively, which are notvisible on FIGS. 3 a and 3 b. The outer part 37 of the upper retainerbar of the upper polycal WRI may be rigidly connected to the upperflange 33 by virtue of two upper screws 36 and 36′, while the outer part46 of the lower retainer bar of the lower polycal WRI may be rigidlyconnected to the lower flange 47 by virtue of two screws, which are notvisible on FIGS. 3 a and 3 b.

It is worth noting that, in order to achieve a design with less partsand a smaller mass, the design may be further optimised, especially bymodifying the central retainer bar assembly between the two polycalWRI's and by replacing the outer part of the upper retainer bar of theupper WRI and the adjoining flange with a single part as well as byreplacing the outer part of the lower retainer bar of the lower WRI andthe adjoining flange with a single part.

FIGS. 4 a and 4 b schematically illustrate by perspective views yetanother exemplary embodiment of a unidirectional damper according to theinvention, in which two sets of two helically wound cables are clampedby three retainer bar assemblies. The extended position of the damper isillustrated by FIG. 4 a, while its compressed position is illustrated byFIG. 4 b. For the sake of clarity, references have been inserted only inFIG. 4 a. The damper may comprise an upper WRI comprising an outer part63 and an inner part 66 of an upper retainer bar, as well as an upperpart 68 and a central part 69 of a middle retainer bar, said upper andmiddle retainer bar being connected by two upper cables 77 a and 77 b.The outer part 63 and the inner part 66 of the upper retainer bar may berigidly connected by virtue of eight screws 79 a to 79 h, the screws 79b to 79 h not being visible on FIGS. 4 a and 4 b. The damper may alsocomprise a lower WRI comprising an outer part 75 and an inner part 74 ofan lower retainer bar, as well as a lower part 70 and the central part69 of the middle retainer bar, said lower and middle retainer bar beingconnected by two lower cables 78 a and 78 b. The outer part 75 and theinner part 74 of the lower retainer bar may be rigidly connected byvirtue of eight screws 81 a to 81 h, the screw 81 e not being visible onFIGS. 4 a and 4 b. The upper part 68, the central part 69 and the lowerpart 70 of the middle retainer bar may be rigidly connected by virtue often screws 80 a to 80 j, the screws 80 d, 80 e, 80 f, 80 g, 80 h, 80 iand 80 j not being visible on FIGS. 4 a and 4 b. Alternatively, in orderto assist more easy mounting of the unidirectional damper assembly, onlythe central part 69 and the lower part 70 of the middle retainer bar maybe rigidly connected by the virtue of ten (shorter) screws 80 a to 80 j,the screws 80 d, 80 e, 80 f, 80 g, 80 h, 80 i and 80 j not being visibleon FIGS. 4 a and 4 b, while the upper part 68 and the central part 69 ofthe middle retainer bar may be rigidly connected by the virtue of tenscrews 80 k to 80 t, none of which is visible on FIGS. 4 a and 4 b. Thedamper may comprise a connecting rod 62 with an upper spherical bearing61, the connecting rod 62 sliding through a guide bush, which is notvisible on FIGS. 4 a and 4 b, and over a guiding pin 71. The inner part66 of the upper retainer bar of the upper WRI may be rigidly connectedto two tubes 72 and 72′, the tube 72′ not being visible on FIG. 4 ahowever being visible on FIG. 4 b, by virtue of bolts 65 and 65′respectively, the bolt 65′ not being visible on FIGS. 4 a and 4 b. Thetwo tubes 72 and 72′ may be rigidly connected to the outer part 75 ofthe lower retainer bar of the lower WRI by virtue of two boltsrespectively, which are not visible on FIGS. 4 a and 4 b. The outer part75 of the lower retainer bar of the lower WRI may comprise a lowerspherical bearing 76.

It is important understanding that, despite the preceding exemplaryembodiments of the invention are based on polycal and helical WRI's,other types of WRI's may also be put to use without departing from thescope of the present invention. It is also worth noting that theexemplary embodiment with helical WRI's may have a higher stiffness andmay thus be suitable for higher loads than the embodiment with polycalWRI's, because more cable loops are available and because the maximumcable diameter of commercially available helical WRI's is larger thanthat of commercially available polycal WRI's. Anyway, the type and theclass of WRI's should be chosen on the basis of the stiffness andmaximum displacement requirements. Then, the guiding and bridging meansshould be physically combined by virtue of dedicated WRI retainer barassemblies. For the cables, best austenitic stainless steel should beused, similar as the steel used in common WRI's. For the screws andbolts, also austenitic stainless steel should be preferred. For theother parts, a high strength aluminium alloy should preferably be used,for example a precipitation hardening copper containing aluminium alloy.For parts of the linear guidance system, such as the guide bush, theguiding pin and the connecting rod, ferritic, martensitic or austeniticstainless steel may optionally be used in order to reduce friction andwear of the sliding interfaces.

FIG. 5 shows force-deflection curves in a system of axes where thehorizontal axis represents a displacement in millimetres (mm) and thevertical axis represents a force in kilo-Newton (kN). A force-deflectioncurve 1 has been actually measured in the tension compression directionof a real single polycal WRI for a displacement ranging from −60 to +60mm, after previous repeated loading with smaller displacement ranges. Acurve 2 has been obtained by reflection of the curve 1 using the origin(0 mm, 0 N) as the point of reflection. The curve 2 is theoreticallyvalid for a polycal WRI operating in the opposite direction. A curve 3has been obtained by summation of the curve 1 and the curve 2. The curve3 is theoretically valid for a hypothetical unidirectional combinationof two polycal WRI's. A curve 4 has been actually measured in thetension compression direction of a real prototype of a damper accordingto the present invention.

It is important noticing that the average load of curve 1 at 0 mmdisplacement is not 0 N, but about −2 kN. This is due to the plasticdeformation in the polycal stainless steel cables, which occurred duringthe previous applied repeated force deflection cycling. At 0 mm relativedisplacement, which corresponds to the original size of the polycal WRIin tension direction, a compressive load developed. The unloaded size ofthe polycal WRI is about 20 mm larger than original.

The curve 3 is a theoretical approximation of the behaviour of aunidirectional damper according to the invention, incorporating theforce-deflection behaviour of the two polycal WRI's only. It appearsthat the measured force-deflection behaviour of the prototype of theunidirectional damper represented by the curve 4 has the same shape, butis significantly less stiff. This is due to the limited stiffness of theother parts used for construction of the prototype. Especially theseparate upper and lower flanges 33 and 47 illustrated by FIGS. 3 a and3 b show appreciable bending. By integrating these flanges with parts ofthe retainer bars a more stiff construction is obtained. This has beenrealised in the design of the unidirectional damper illustrated by FIGS.4 a and 4 b.

In view of the preceding, it is clear that the present invention enablesstraightforward balancing of isolated objects.

In addition, FIGS. 6 a, 6 b and 6 c illustrate another major advantageof an unidirectional damper according to the invention as compared toomnidirectional WRI's using 2-dimensional sketches.

FIG. 6 a illustrates an object 90 having a squared section of a lengtha. The object 90 is isolated by virtue of a mechanical isolation set-upcomprising two unidirectional dampers 91 and 92 according to theinvention. The dampers 91 and 92 are arranged with a distance b betweentheir lower ends and with their main axes making angles of 45° with thevertical direction, such that the elastic centre EC_(a) of the isolationset-up is at the same location as the centre of gravity CoG of theobject 90, EC and CoG standing at a same height h_(ECa).

FIG. 6 b illustrates the same object 90 isolated by virtue of amechanical isolation set-up comprising two common polycal or helicalWRI's 93 and 94 arranged with a distance c between their lower ends andwith their tension-compression direction parallel to the verticaldirection, such that the elastic centre EC_(b) of the isolation set-upis at the same location as the centre of gravity CoG of the object 90,EC and CoG standing at a same height h_(ECb).

FIG. 6 c illustrates the same object 90 isolated by use of anothermechanical isolation set-up comprising the two same WRI's 93 and 94arranged with a distance d between their lower ends and with theirtension-compression directions making angles of 45° with the verticaldirection, such that the elastic centre EC_(S) of the isolation set-upis at the same location as the centre of gravity CoG of the object 90,EC and CoG standing at a same height h_(ECc).

For each of these three set-ups, the elastic centre coincides with thecentre of gravity of the object 90, resulting in a balanced set-up. Abalanced set-up means that the that rotations occurring due totranslational accelerations are minimized. Vice versa, translationsoccurring due to rotational accelerations are minimized. Also in thiscase, the natural vibration modes of the isolated object 90 areuncoupled into pure translation and rotation modes.

With regard to FIGS. 6 a, 6 b and 6 c, the following relations betweenthe distances a, b, c and d and between the heights h_(ECa), h_(ECb) andh_(ECc) are valid:

b>d>c>a

h_(ECa)>h_(ECc)>h_(ECb)

The advantage concerns the location of the elastic centre of amechanical isolation set-up if only a single interface plane to thesurroundings is available. The distance from the interface plane to theelastic centre can be larger if unidirectional dampers are employed. Fora balanced set-up, the centre of gravity of the mechanically isolatedobject and the elastic centre have to coincide. A balanced set-up meansthat rotations occurring due to translational accelerations areminimized. Also in this case, the natural vibration modes of theisolated object are uncoupled into pure translation and rotation modes.Thus, by use of unidirectional dampers according to the invention,higher balanced isolated objects may be achieved.

It is also worth noting that the two unidirectional dampers according tothe invention of FIG. 6 a, which include four common WRI's in total,theoretically have twice the mass loading capacity of a single commonWRI, because two mutually perpendicular directions are supported. Foreasy and fair comparison, fair meaning that the stiffnesses in verticaldirection, the mass loading capacities in vertical direction as well asthe frequencies of the resonance mode in vertical direction of theset-ups in FIGS. 6 a to 6 c are approximately equal, one commonomnidirectional WRI is assumed to be arranged at each corner of theobject 90 for the set-ups of FIGS. 6 b and 6 c. Also omnidirectionalWRI's can be placed slanted, for example by 45° as depicted on FIG. 6 c.However their transverse stiffness, which is usually 20 to 50% of thetension-compression stiffness, still limits the attainable height of theelastic centre. Usually the mass load capacity of WRI's in the 45°roll-tension-compression direction is presented by WRI suppliers asequal to that of the tension-compression direction. Actually it issmaller, because the load capacity of the roll direction is smaller.Because in a unidrectional damper according to the invention only thestiffness in tension-compression direction is employed and becauseadditional parts are needed, the total effective stiffness over own massratio of a complete set-up is smaller and thus worse than for a set-upwith common omnidirectional WRI's. However, by use of unidirectionaldampers according to the invention, higher balanced isolated objects maybe achieved if only a single interface plane to the surroundings isavailable.

The aforementioned advantage concerning the attainable height of thebalanced isolated objects is further illustrated by FIG. 7, whichillustrates again the object 90 mechanically isolated by virtue of thesame three mechanical isolator set-ups as those illustrated by FIGS. 6a, 6 b and 6 c.

For the set-up with the unidirectional dampers 91 and 92 according tothe invention, the elastic centre is at the height of the crossing ofthe lines through the main axes of the unidirectional dampers 91 and 92.For the set-up with the common WRI's 93 and 94 arranged slanted by 45°,the elastic centre is at a location depending on the relative stiffnessin tension-compression and roll (or shear) directions of the commonWRI's 93 and 94. For the set-up with the common WRI's 93 and 94 arrangedvertically, the elastic centre is at the same height as the height ofthe geometric centre of the common WRI's 93 and 94.

Obviously, for the set-up with the unidirectional dampers 91 and 92according to the invention, the distance from either their upper orlower interface plane to the horizontal plane passing through the centreof gravity is larger than the corresponding distances for the otherset-ups with common WRI's 93 and 94, i.e. the following relations arevalid:

h1L=h_(ECa)>h2L=h_(ECc)>h3L=h_(ECb)

h1U>h2U>h3U

This is yet another advantage if a balanced suspension set-up isrequired, while only a single interface plane is available for mountingthe set-ups and when the distance between the centre of gravity of theobject 90 and this interface plane is relatively large, i.e. about onehalf of the main horizontal dimensions of the object 90.

An unidirectional damper according to the invention may be connected torelatively stable surroundings by virtue of mounting feet as illustratedby FIGS. 8 and 9, which show similar exemplary unidirectional dampers asthose illustrated by FIGS. 4 a and 4 b. A rigid connection between alower foot 100 and the inner part of the lower spherical bearing 76 isrealized by a lower pin 101 and a rigid connection between an upper foot102 and the inner part of the upper spherical bearing 61 is realized byan upper pin 103. After mounting of both the upper and lower feet 100and 102 to the surroundings respectively, rotation of a unidirectionaldamper according to FIGS. 4 a and 4 b around it's main axis remainspossible, until for example the outer part 75 of the lower retainer barof the lower WRI hits against the lower foot 100. To prevent suchhitting, additional rotation limiting means may be added.

FIG. 8 illustrates exemplary rotation limiting means, which may comprisetwo additional protrusions 104 a and 104 b of the outer part 75 of thelower retainer bar of the lower WRI. The additional protrusions 104 aand 104 b may be realized by separate parts attached to the outer part75 or preferably as machined features of the outer part 75 itself. Theprotrusions 104 a and 104 b may slide over the cylindrical surface ofthe lower pin 101, which may advantageously extend beyond the lower foot101. The contact of each of the protrusions 104 a and 104 b with lowerpin 101 may be constituted by a small loose fit or show limited preloadgenerated by the elastic properties and particular dimensioning of theadjoining parts.

FIG. 9 illustrates other exemplary rotation limiting means, which maycomprise at least one of two or possibly two stainless steelanti-rotation cables 110 a and 110 b, with a relatively small diameter,flexibly connecting the lower retainer bar of the lower WRI to thesurroundings. The connection of the cable 110 a to the surroundings maybe realized by clamping the cable 110 a between two blocks 111 a and 112a, the blocks 111 a and 112 a being hold tightly together with bolts 113a and 113 b. Similarly, the connection of the cable 110 b to thesurroundings may be realized by clamping the cable 110 b between twoblocks 111 b and 112 b, the blocks 11 lb and 112 b being hold tightlytogether with bolts 113 c and 113 d.

1. A device for isolating an object from external motions, the devicecomprising: two wire rope isolators, the two wire rope isolators beingarranged such that, if one of the two wire rope isolators is loaded incompression, then the other wire rope isolator is loaded in tension,each of the two wire rope isolators comprising two retainer barsflexibly connected one to the other by at least one cable, linearguiding means allowing only for a relative displacement of some of theretainer bars with respect to the other retainer bars in a singledirection, the direction being a common tension-compression direction ofthe two wire rope isolators, wherein at least one of the two wire ropeisolators is at least one of a polycal wire rope isolator, a helicalwire rope isolator or a a ring-type wire rope isolator.
 2. A device forisolating an object from external motions, the device comprising: twowire rope isolators, the two wire rope isolators being arranged suchthat, if one of the two wire rope isolators is loaded in compression,then the other wire rope isolator is loaded in tension, each of the twowire rope isolators comprising two retainer bars flexibly connected oneto the other by at least one cable, linear guiding means allowing onlyfor a relative displacement of some of the retainer bars with respect tothe other retainer bars in a single direction, the direction being acommon tension-compression direction of the two wire rope isolators; andmeans to limit rotation around the common tension-compression directionof the two wire rope isolators.
 3. A device for isolating an object fromexternal motions, the device comprising: two wire rope isolators, thetwo wire rope isolators being arranged such that, if one of the two wirerope isolators is loaded in compression, then the other wire ropeisolator is loaded in tension, each of the two wire rope isolatorscomprising two retainer bars flexibly connected one to the other by atleast one cable, and linear guiding means allowing only for a relativedisplacement of some of the retainer bars with respect to the otherretainer bars in a single direction, the direction being a commontension-compression direction of the two wire rope isolators.
 4. Thedevice according to claim 3, wherein at least one of the two wire ropeisolators is a polycal wire rope isolator.
 5. The device according toclaim 3, wherein at least one of the two wire rope isolators is ahelical wire rope isolator.
 6. The device according to claim 3, whereinat least one of the two wire rope isolators is a ring-type wire ropeisolator.
 7. The device according to claim 3, further comprising meansto limit rotation around the common tension-compression direction of thetwo wire rope isolators.
 8. The device according to claim 7, wherein themeans to limit rotation comprise one or two cables rigidly connected toone of the retainer bars at one of their ends, the cables being rigidlyconnected to the surroundings of the object at their other ends.
 9. Thedevice according to claim 3, further comprising: an upper wire ropeisolator and a lower wire rope isolator, each wire rope isolatorcomprising an upper retainer bar and a lower retainer bar: the upperretainer bar of the upper wire rope isolator is rigidly connected to thelower retainer bar of the lower wire rope isolator by virtue of bridgingmeans, and; the lower retainer bar of the upper wire rope isolator isrigidly connected to the upper retainer bar of the lower wire ropeisolator, said rigidly connected retainer bars forming a centralretainer bar assembly between the two wire rope isolators, wherein thelinear guiding means comprise: a hollow connecting rod rigidly connectedto the central retainer bar assembly and arranged substantially parallelwith the common tension-compression direction of the two wire ropeisolators, a guiding pin rigidly connected to the lower retainer bar ofthe lower wire rope isolator and arranged substantially parallel withthe common tension-compression direction of the two wire rope isolators,and a guide bush rigidly connected to the upper retainer bar of theupper wire rope isolator, arranged such that the hollow connecting rodslides through the guide bush and over the guiding pin, wherein thehollow connecting rod comprises, at its end opposite to the guiding pin,an upper universal revolute joint, and the guiding pin comprises, at itsend opposite to the hollow connecting rod, a lower universal revolutejoint, wherein the two universal revolute joints are spherical bearings;and means to limit rotation around the common tension-compressiondirection of the two wire rope isolators, wherein the means to limitrotation comprise a pin extending through one of the spherical bearings,one of the retainer bars comprising two protrusions arranged so as toslide over the cylindrical surface of the pin when the isolated objectmoves.